


Come Back to Earth, Kid

by dls



Series: Post-Infinity War Ficlets [2]
Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe
Genre: Angst, Avengers: Infinity War Part 1 (Movie) Compliant, Avengers: Infinity War Part 1 (Movie) Spoilers, Gen, Missing Scene
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-05-17
Updated: 2018-05-17
Packaged: 2019-05-08 03:04:12
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 725
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14685132
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/dls/pseuds/dls
Summary: May mutters under her breath aboutteenagersas she searches the crowd for Peter.





	Come Back to Earth, Kid

**Author's Note:**

> Beta-ed by [Arboreal](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Arboreal).
> 
> References/Quotes   
>  Title from "Birthday Song" by Andrew McMahon in the Wilderness.   
>  _Spider-Man: Homecoming._

May is in the middle of responding to an evite for an office party - can I bring my nephew? - when a collective gasp breaks out among her coworkers. She turns toward the direction they are pointing and freezes at the sight of a spinning spaceship in the sky.

_Peter._

Immediately, she reaches for her cell phone, scanning the display for any alerts. A blank screen stares back at her. She tries to tell herself that no news is good news as she calls him. 

It goes to voicemail. Maybe he can't pick up because he's being evacuated, or running for his life, or dy-

  
Or maybe he just has his phone on silent. Right, teenagers do that. Occam's Razor. Don't overthink it.

She types out a text with trembling fingers: _You okay?_

It looks strangely serious, so she adds on a smiling emoji. Then a winking one. Then a hand that's probably a wave or a high five. Then an alien. And then she waits.

And waits.

And waits.

Until her phone goes dark after the stretch of inactivity.

She unlocks it with an impatient swipe of her finger and sends Peter another text: _Where are you?_

This time, she doesn't bother with emojis. 

The minutes tick by in silence and May feels like she's crawling out of her skin, jittery and cold. As a last resort, she pulls up the tracking app and finally, finally, breathes when she sees the little dot marking Peter's location blinking and moving cheerfully on the freeway. He's still on the bus.

Thank god he seems to have outgrown the superhero obsession over the last two years, shortly after she found him trying on a ridiculously well-made replica of the Spider-man suit. Peter still talks about Tony Stark like the man hung the moon...or probably the whole solar system with the way Peter goes on and on and on. 

She texts him again: _I see you!_

This time the winky face she sends feels more genuine and there's a bit of a smile on her face too when she finds shaky footage of Iron Man firing a laser beam - Peter probably knows the correct name for that - at the giant alien.

Iron Man will save them.

*

Not even an hour later, the spaceship has left and Tony Stark is declared missing.

May thinks about Iron Man flying the nuclear missile through a worm hole almost a decade ago and the sheer faith on Peter's face as he watched the news. 

_Iron Man's coming back, Aunt May! He's coming back!_

She hopes iron Man makes it back this time too, if only to keep her nephew's heart and hope in heroes from breaking. Peter still hasn't written back yet but the little dot tells her he's on his way back to school, field trip likely cancelled, so she only feels a little annoyed when she sends him another text: _Don't go anywhere, I'm coming to pick you up._

*

Traffic is horrible and May uses her horn more in the two hours it takes her to get to Peter's school than she had in the past year. The streets are either closed or filled with worried people trying to get to their loved ones, probably because they don't respond to texts either.

The thought makes her feel a little better, at least.

*

Where there's Ned, there's Peter. So May is understandably confused - and a little freaked out - when she finds Ned sitting on the steps. 

_Alone._

_Holding Peter's backpack._

"Where's Peter?" There's a shrill note in her voice that she doesn't recognize and judging by the startled look in Ned's eyes, he doesn't either. But she doesn't care if she's messing up her image as the cool aunt. She needs to know where Peter is. "Where is he?"

"He-" Ned stutters. "He was on the bus. Then there was this spaceship-"

"Where is he now, Ned?"

"Um."

The boy pales and May feels a twinge of guilt but pushes it aside; she has to know where Peter is, it's just the two of them now. "Ned!" She reaches out to grab his arm, to shake him out of whatever shock he's in. Her hand goes through him as his arm crumbles.

Peter's backpack lands softly on a pile of ash.

May's scream chokes on the taste of death and dust.

**Author's Note:**

> [dls-ao3.tumblr.com](https://dls-ao3.tumblr.com/)


End file.
